‘Online procedure good, but can be better’

Students filling in their junior college application forms online have been facing several problems.

Students filling in their junior college application forms online have been facing several problems.

The online application form asks them to fill in a minimum of 35 college options, a requirement that is driving many into confusion. Last year, the department had asked students to only fill in a minimum of five options (for bifocal courses) and ten options (for the general streams). Now students are scrambling to try and fill in as many colleges as possible, even though they may have never heard of them before.

“It would have been better if we just had to fill in 10 or 15 options,” said Rugvedi Kapse, 15, a student who cleared her Class 10 from St Louis School in Andheri. “It is difficult to put in some many colleges.”

While most students and parents have said the new form is good, and that the application process has been smooth so far, they have pointed out possible areas where the department can improve.

The form is divided into three sections: in the first part students fill in their preferences overall, in the second part they list preferences by zone, and in the third part, according to the ward in which they live.

Parents have also pointed out that better assistance at guidance centres would be useful. “Every one has a different question to ask and there is just one official to answer all the queries,” said Anjali Kumar, a parent from Pune. “Ideally there should be more staff to handle all the different doubts.”